Release of
November 2007
MCAS Retest Items
January 2008
Massachusetts Department of Education
This document was prepared by the
Massachusetts Department of Education
Jeffrey Nellhaus
Acting Commissioner of Education
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Inquiries regarding the Department’s compliance with Title IX and other civil rights laws may be directed to the
Human Resources Director, 350 Main St., Malden, MA 02148 781-338-6105.
© 2008 Massachusetts Department of Education
Permission is hereby granted to copy for non-commercial educational purposes any or all parts of this document.
Please credit the “Massachusetts Department of Education.”
Massachusetts Department of Education
350 Main Street, Malden, MA 02148-5023
Phone 781-338-3000 TTY: N.E.T. Relay 800-439-2370
www.doe.mass.edu
Table of Contents
Commissioner’s Foreword
I. Document Purpose and Structure. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   1
II. English Language Arts Retest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   4
A. Composition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   5
B. Reading Comprehension . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   7
III. Mathematics Retest. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Commissioner’s Foreword
Dear Colleagues:
One of the goals of the Department of Education is to help schools acquire the capacity to plan for and meet the
accountability requirements of both state and federal law. In keeping with this goal, the Department regularly
releases MCAS test items to provide information regarding the kinds of knowledge and skills that students are
expected to demonstrate. In November 2007, MCAS retests in Mathematics and English Language Arts were
administered in high schools across the state. In keeping with our past practice of releasing all test items on which
student results are based, I am pleased to announce that all questions from these tests are included in Release of
November 2007 MCAS Retest Items.
This publication is available only through the Department of Education Web site at www.doe.mass.edu/mcas/
testitems.html. The test items for both ELA and Mathematics can be easily printed from this site. I encourage local
educators to use the relevant sections of this document together with their Test Item Analysis Report Summaries
and Test Item Analysis Rosters as guides for planning changes in curriculum and instruction that may be needed to
ensure that schools and districts make regular progress in improving student performance.
Thank you for your support as we work together to strengthen education for our students in Massachusetts.
Sincerely,
Jeffrey Nellhaus
Acting Commissioner of Education
I. Document Purpose and Structure
Document Purpose and Structure
Purpose
The purpose of this document is to share with educators and the public all of the test items from the November
2007 MCAS English Language Arts and Mathematics Retests. Local educators will be able to use this information
to identify strengths and weaknesses in their curriculum and instruction, and to guide the changes necessary to more
effectively meet their students’ needs.
This document is also intended to be used by school and district personnel as a companion document to the Test
Item Analysis Reports. Each school in which a retest was administered receives a November Retest Test Item Analysis
Report Summary and a Test Item Analysis Roster for English Language Arts and Mathematics. These reports
provide data generated from student responses. Each report lists, for the school receiving the report, the names of
all enrolled students who took the November 2007 Retest in that report’s content area, and shows how each student
answered each test question (item). The report labels each item as multiple-choice, open-response, short-answer, or
writing prompt and identifies the item’s MCAS reporting category. Item numbers in this document correlate directly
to the “Item Numbers” in the Test Item Analysis Reports.
Structure
Chapters II and III of this document contain, respectively, information for the November 2007 English Language
Arts and Mathematics Retests. Each of these chapters has three main sections. The first section introduces the
chapter by listing the Massachusetts Curriculum Framework content strands assessed by MCAS in that chapter’s
content area. These content strands are identical to the MCAS reporting categories under which retest results are
reported to schools and districts. In addition, there is a brief overview of the retest (number of test sessions, types of
items, reference materials allowed, and cross-referencing information).
The second section contains the test items used to generate November 2007 MCAS student results for that chapter’s
content area. With the exception of the ELA Composition writing prompt, the test items in this document are shown
in the same order and basic format in which they were presented in the test booklets. The Mathematics Reference
Sheet used by students during MCAS Mathematics test sessions is inserted immediately following the last question
in the Mathematics chapter.
Due to copyright restrictions, certain English Language Arts reading passages are not available on the Department’s
Internet site. Copyright information for all reading passages is provided in the document. For further information,
contact Student Assessment Services at 781-338-3625.
The final section of each chapter is a table that cross-references each item with its MCAS reporting category and
with the Framework standard it assesses. Correct answers to multiple-choice questions and, for the Mathematics
retest, short-answer questions are also listed in the table.
Materials presented in this document are not formatted exactly as they appeared in student test booklets. For
example, in order to present items most efficiently in this document, the following modifications have been made:
■ Some fonts and/or font sizes may have been changed and/or reduced.
■ S ome graphics may have been reduced in size from their appearance in student test booklets; however, they
maintain the same proportions in each case.
■ A
ll references to page numbers in answer booklets have been deleted from the directions that accompany
test items.
■ T
he four lined pages provided for students’ initial English Language Arts Composition Retest drafts are
omitted.
II. English Language Arts Retest
A. Composition
B. Reading Comprehension
English Language Arts Retest
Test Structure
The English Language Arts Retest was presented in the following two parts:
■ the ELA Composition Retest, which used a writing prompt to assess learning standards from the
Massachusetts English Language Arts Curriculum Framework’s Composition strand
■ the ELA Reading Comprehension Retest, which used multiple-choice and open-response questions (items) to
assess learning standards from the Curriculum Framework’s Language and Reading and Literature strands
A. Composition
The English Language Arts (ELA) Composition Retest was based on learning standards in the Composition strand
of the Massachusetts English Language Arts Curriculum Framework (2001). These learning standards appear on
pages 72–83 of the Framework, which is available on the Department Web site at www.doe.mass.edu/frameworks/
current.html.
In Test Item Analysis Reports, ELA Composition Retest results are reported under the Composition reporting
category.
Test Sessions and Content Overview
The ELA Composition Retest included two separate test sessions, administered on the same day with a short break
between sessions. During the first session, each student wrote an initial draft of a composition in response to the
appropriate writing prompt on the next page. During the second session, each student revised his or her draft
and submitted a final composition, which was scored in the areas of Topic Development and Standard English
Conventions. The MCAS Writing Scoring Guide (Composition Grade 10) is available at www.doe.mass.edu/mcas/
student/scoring10.doc.
Reference Materials
At least one English-language dictionary per classroom was provided for student use during ELA Composition
retest sessions. The use of bilingual word-to-word dictionaries was allowed for current and former limited English
proficient students only. No other reference materials were allowed during either ELA Composition retest session.
Cross-Reference Information
Framework general standards 19–22 are assessed by the ELA Composition.
English Language Arts Retest
November Retest Writing Prompt
Writing Prompt
Often in works of literature, a character influences others in good or bad ways.
From a work of literature you have read in or out of school, select a character
who has the power to influence other characters in good or bad ways. In a
well-developed composition, identify the character, describe how the character
influences others in good or bad ways, and explain how the character’s behavior is
important to the work of literature.
B. Reading Comprehension
The English Language Arts Reading Comprehension Retest was based on learning standards in the two
content strands of the Massachusetts English Language Arts Curriculum Framework (2001) listed
below. Page numbers for the learning standards appear in parentheses.
■ Language (Framework, pages 19–26)
■ Reading and Literature (Framework, pages 35–64)
The English Language Arts Curriculum Framework is available on the Department Web site at
www.doe.mass.edu/frameworks/current.html.
In Test Item Analysis Reports, ELA Reading Comprehension retest results are reported under two MCAS
reporting categories: Language and Reading and Literature, which are identical to the two Framework
content strands listed above.
Test Sessions
The ELA Reading Comprehension Retest included three separate test sessions. Sessions 1 and 2 were
both administered on the same day, and Session 3 was administered on the following day. Each session
included selected readings, followed by multiple-choice and open-response questions. Reading passages
and test items are shown on the following pages as they appeared in test booklets. Due to copyright
restrictions, certain passages cannot be released to the public on the Web site.
Reference Materials
The use of bilingual word-to-word dictionaries was allowed for limited English proficient students only,
during all three ELA Reading Comprehension sessions. No other reference materials were allowed
during any ELA Reading Comprehension retest session.
Cross-Reference Information
The table at the conclusion of this chapter indicates each item’s reporting category and the Framework
general standard it assesses. The correct answers for multiple-choice questions are also displayed in the
table.
English Language Arts
Reading Comprehension: Session 1
DIRECTIONS
This session contains two reading selections with twelve multiple-choice questions and two
open-response questions. Mark your answers to these questions in the spaces provided in
your Student Answer Booklet.
In northern New Zealand, the forces of nature have created elaborate caves. Read this article about the
caves, and then answer the questions that follow.
The “Stars” of Waitomo Cave
by Donna O’Meara
1
2
3
1
2
A
fter driving two hours west of Rotorua
on the North Island of New Zealand,
past rolling green hills dotted with white
sheep and bush, I pull into the sleepy little
village of Waitomo. The village is built
on a foundation of limestone bedrock that
has been shaped by the age-old forces of
water. Its specialized topography1 is called
a karst landscape (from the German for the
limestone region of Kras, which includes
parts of Slovenia, Croatia, and Italy), and
is marked by sinkholes, caves, deep shafts,
and disappearing rivers.
Thirty million years ago, Waitomo was
under the sea. Shells from crabs, clams, and
other sea creatures compacted on the sea
floor to form limestone. But, over time, the
motion of earth’s crust pushed New Zealand
up and out of the sea.
The force left fractures and crevices in the
new land. Rain, mixed with carbon dioxide
from our atmosphere, formed a weak acid
that slowly ate away at the limestone as it
trickled through these cracks. The cracks
widened into deep shafts, and then into
4
5
topography — the surface features of a place or region
Polynesian/Melanesian — people native to islands in the South Pacific
caves with underground rivers. The name
Waitomo comes from the Maori words wai
for water and tomo for shaft. The Maori are
a New Zealand people of Polynesian and
Melanesian2 descent.
I am greeted at the opening of the largest
cave by a young Maori woman, whose bright
smile glows against her honey-colored skin
and dark, wavy hair. “My name is Kuranui
and I will be your guide today,” she tells
me and a few other eager cave explorers.
“Follow me, watch your step, and don’t
bump your head.”
As we enter the dark mouth of the cave,
Kuranui tells us her ancestors, the Maori
people who first settled New Zealand, knew
of this cave for thousands of years, but kept
its location a secret. However, in 1887, her
great grandparents showed the cave system
to a friend, an Englishman named Fred
Mace, who was interested in exploring and
mapping caves. Mace turned over his maps
and photographs of the cave system to the
New Zealand government, which eventually
convinced the Maori to open the caves as a
Reading Comprehension
6
7
8
9
3
4
Session 1
tourist attraction in 1911. Today, the cave
system is New Zealand’s largest tourist
draw, hosting 400,000 visitors annually.
Inside, the floor of the cave that we are
exploring feels slippery and smooth. I am
blinded for an instant as my eyes adapt to the
dim interior. I immediately notice the sound
of dripping water. The air is warm and moist.
We wriggle through a narrow passage about
60 centimeters wide and about 4 meters
high as we climb down farther into the
earth. Soft lights make the cave interior look
as though it were molded from creamy wax
or polished alabaster.3 The walls look like
folded silk.
Kuranui tells us that we are entering the
Cathedral Room. The smooth reflective
quality of the walls makes the acoustics4
so perfect in this large cavern that the New
Zealand Opera once held a small concert (an
opera singer and most likely taped music)
for a select audience here by candlelight!
It looks like a fairy world. The rumpled
walls soar to a ceiling almost 20 meters high.
A massive calcite crystal column dominates
the cavern. What look like milky-glass
icicles hang from the rippled ceiling and
jut from a pale floor that looks like poured
banana pudding. “This,” Kuranui says, “is
the cave’s way of interior decorating.” All
of these curving, twisting formations, which
to me seem to be the artwork of angels, are
called speleothems. The speleothems are
splashed with streaks of pastel pink, yellow,
amber, red, and green. Speleothems come in
many shapes and sizes and are all formed
from water: sitting water, dripping water,
and flowing water.
The “icicles” overhead are actually spearshaped straw stalactites. They originate
when a single drop of water dangles from
10
11
12
13
14
alabaster — a white, smooth stone often used in statues
acoustics — factors influencing how well sound is heard
the ceiling and deposits a tiny circle of
calcite crystals. Over time, this creates a
ring-shaped build-up. The process repeats
over time and a cone-shaped stalactite is
formed.
When the droplet falls and strikes the
floor, it deposits calcite that builds upward to
form a stalagmite. Sometimes the stalactite
and the stalagmite grow together and form
a large column. Waitomo’s greatest column
weighs approximately 2,500 kilograms. By
some estimates, it takes about 8 million
drops of water per day (about 92 drops per
second) and 4,000 years to form one 1.8meter-high stalagmite.
The wavy walls and floor are covered with
flowstone. The crystal ripples, “curtains,”
“draperies,” and “shawls” are formed when
water flows in sheets down cave walls.
As we forge deeper into the cave, the path
narrows and slopes sharply. We duck under
a large crystal archway overhead and stop
at the edge of a precipice, where we see
the top of a wooden ladder. At the ladder’s
bottom, about 3 meters down, is a small
boat containing a long pole. It is floating on
a smooth river that looks black because it is
unlit.
Using her flashlight to see, Kuranui
escorts each of us down into the boat. As
she picks up the pole and pushes off from
the cave wall, she instructs us to stop talking
as she turns off her flashlight. I hear the
trickle of water against the boat. We silently
maneuver through dark underground
corridors and channels.
Next, our guide asks us to close our eyes.
The boat stops and gently rocks back and
forth. “OK,” Kuranui says. “Open your
eyes.” I see what appears to be the most
brilliant star-filled night sky I could ever
Reading Comprehension
15
16
Session 1
imagine. Millions of twinkling “stars”
shine overhead on the cave’s ceiling.
“This,” Kuranui whispers, “is Glowworm
Grotto.” The spectacle is pure magic. I can’t
believe these “stars” are worms!
Although other glowworm caves exist
throughout the world, this particular
glowworm, Arachnocampa luminosa, is
found only in New Zealand. The Glowworm
Cave of Waitomo has the perfect humidity,
darkness, temperature, and structure to host
the largest concentration of glowworms in
the country. Glowworms are the larval or
maggot stage of a tiny flying insect, the
fungus gnat. The worm’s greenish glow,
called bioluminescence, is produced by a
special internal process.
After hatching from eggs, the glowworms
remain attached to the cave ceiling with a
sticky substance for nine months. Like cave
fishermen, they “cast” down a sticky line.
17
Insects flying into the cave are snagged,
reeled in, and eaten. The hungrier the
worm is, the brighter it glows. After nine
months in this glowworm stage, the worm
becomes a gnat and lives for only three
more days.
Still amazed by what we have just seen,
we drift toward the back of the cave toward
an opening about 6 meters high. Insects
that feed the glowworms fly in through this
opening, and the mature glowworms fly out
of it as gnats. We dock and climb out of
the boat. Sunlight begins to filter in as we
make our exit. Kuranui, I realize, is doing
just what her ancestors would have wanted
her to do. She is sharing and protecting her
Maori cultural heritage by caretaking for
this unique cave system. She is ensuring that
its beauty will be preserved for generations
of visitors and Maori to enjoy.
LET IT GLOW, LET IT GLOW, LET IT GLOW
18
H
ow does the glowworm glow? The function is called bioluminescence. Bioluminescence
is light made by an organism through a chemical reaction. Many deep sea fish are
bioluminescent, but on land only this gnat and a few other insects such as the firefly produce
light.
19
When the glowworm combines a waste product called luciferin with the enzyme luciferase
and the energy molecule ATP (adenosine triphosphate), an electronically excited glow results.
20
Bioluminescence is different from fluorescence and phosphorescence, which result when
light from an outside source, such as a light bulb, is absorbed and then re-emitted as photons.
That’s how glow-in-the-dark ceiling stars, pens, posters, and t-shirts work.
21
By the way, if you’re lucky enough to visit the glowworms someday, please don’t shine your
flashlight on them. It would weaken them, their light would fade, and they would go hungry.
From ODYSSEY’s May 2001 issue: Worlds Below: Caving, © 2001, Cobblestone Publishing, 30 Grove Street, Suite C, Peterborough, NH 03458.
All Rights Reserved. Used by permission of Carus Publishing Company.
10
Reading Comprehension
Session 1
1 According to the article, what does the
●
Maori name “Waitomo” mean in English?
3 In paragraphs 6 and 8, what is the main
●
effect of the similes “like folded silk” and
A. icicle cave
“like poured banana pudding”?
B. water shaft
A. They emphasize the texture of the
caves.
C. glowworm grotto
B. They suggest how the stone caves
were formed.
D. waxed wall cavern
C. They illustrate the varying colors of
the stone caves.
D. They show how the caves are different
from other caves.
2 According to paragraph 5, what action
●
of Kuranui’s ancestors led to the
development of Waitomo as a tourist
attraction?
A. They drew maps of the entire cave
system.
4 In addition to its extraordinary beauty, the
●
Cathedral Room is most notable for its
B. They designed a lighting system for
the caves.
A. spectacular indoor lighting.
C. They showed the caves to an interested
friend.
B. quiet, worshipful atmosphere.
D. They invited thousands of visitors to
the caves.
D. comfortable, even temperature.
C. excellent sound transmission.
11
Reading Comprehension
Session 1
5 Based on paragraph 17, why did the Maori
●
keep the location of the caves a secret for
7 Which of the following is the best
●
definition of the word descent as it is
thousands of years?
used in paragraph 3?
A. They valued the caves as forts.
A. gradual decline
B. They thought the caves were
dangerous.
B. attack or onslaught
C. They feared outsiders would harm
the caves.
D. ancestry or lineage
C. downward passage
D. They thought others would not be
interested in the caves.
8 In paragraph 14, why is the word “stars”
●
placed inside quotation marks?
●
6
A. The stars are those of a Maori song.
How does the author of the article mainly
organize her description of the cave
system?
B. The stars referred to are not real stars.
C. “Stars” is the most important word in
the article.
A. She explains the stages of the caves’
development.
D. “Stars” is a quote from something
Kuranui says.
B. She classifies the various kinds of
cave rock formations.
C. She compares and contrasts two of
the underground caves.
D. She describes what she sees as she
moves through the caves.
12
Reading Comprehension
Session 1
Question 9 is an open-response question.
•Read the question carefully.
•Explain your answer.
•Add supporting details.
•Double-check your work.
Write your answer to question 9 in the space provided in your Student Answer Booklet.
9 Based on the article, explain how the guide Kuranui enriches the experience of the tourists who
●
are visiting the caves. Support your answer with relevant and specific information from the article.
13
Reading Comprehension
Session 1
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14
English
English
Language
Language
Arts Arts
Reading
Comprehension
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to watch
to watch
my my
leggy, passionate
leggy, passionate
ten-year-old
ten-year-old
walk into
walkthe
into
jaws
theofjaws
thisof
dilemma
this dilemma
by herself.
by herself.
She
9 looked
She looked
up, uncertain.
up, uncertain.
“But it’s
“But
a living
it’s a living
creature,
creature,
Grandmama.
Grandmama.
We can’t
Wekill
can’t
it kill
just itbecause
just because
we we
want awant
shell afor
shell
ourfor
collection.”
our collection.”
10
My mother,
My mother,
like every
like grandmother,
every grandmother,
wants wants
her grandchildren
her grandchildren
to havetothe
have
sun,
thethe
sun,
moon,
the moon,
and the
and the
stars, all
stars,
tucked
all tucked
into a into
box with
a boxa with
bright
a bright
red bow.
redIfbow.
my daughter
If my daughter
really wanted
really wanted
this shell,
this Grandmama
shell, Grandmama
was going
was going
to givetoher
giveanher
out.an“Well,”
out. “Well,”
she said,
she summoning
said, summoning
remarkable
remarkable
creativity,
creativity,
“can’t “can’t
we find
weitfind it
another
another
shell?”shell?”
1
2
1
conch —
conch
any of—various
any of tropical
various tropical
marine shells
marine shells
2
expendable
expendable
— not worth
— notsaving
worth saving
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Session 3
Session 1
My daughter pondered this. She knows, as I do, that a hermit crab won’t give up its shell just
because you want it. It will hold on. It will relinquish a claw or a head, or whatever else you manage to
pull off, rather than come out. Were we going to take this thing home and set out an array of
alternatives in front of it, as if it were a hapless3 shopper who’d won a dazzling spree? Some hermit
crabs, the bigger ones with reddish claws, are game for a certain amount of terrestrial adventure, but
this one wasn’t that kind. Away from the littoral zone, this tiny life would give up its ghost4 within a
few hours. I know this, I’m ashamed to say, from experience. So I waited, as did my husband, who
had jogged up to join us, wondering what our little life-and-death huddle was all about.
My daughter looked at the creature in her hand for a long time and then said firmly, “No. We can’t
kill it.”
“Anyway, it has the best shell on this whole beach,” Steven said, quick to nail a few planks of
support to her decision lest it should wobble. “It deserves to keep it.”
So we handed it over to him, and he tossed it far out into the surf, to brood out there however a
crustacean mind may brood upon a catastrophe narrowly escaped in the cradle of a human child’s
hand.
...
3
hapless
— unfortunate
hapless 4—
unfortunate
give
up
its
— toliving
cease living
give up its ghost —ghost
to cease
“Setting
the pp.
Crabs”
SMALL
WONDER:
ESSAYS
by BARBARA
KINGSOLVER.
Copyright
© 2002 ©
by 2002
Barbara
“Setting Free
the Free
Crabs”
60 –from
74 from
SMALL
WONDER:
ESSAYS
by BARBARA
KINGSOLVER.
Copyright
by
Kingsolver. Reprinted
Publishers
Inc.
Barbara Kingsolver.
Reprinted by
bypermission
permissionofofHarperCollins
HarperCollins
Publishers.
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G10_ELA2_05_Form 30
Reading Comprehension
Session 1
10 According to the excerpt, why does the
●
narrator not give her opinion about her
12 Read the sentence from paragraph 10 in the
●
box below.
daughter’s keeping the shell?
My mother, like every grandmother,
wants her grandchildren to have the
sun, the moon, and the stars, all
tucked into a box with a bright
red bow.
A.She wants her daughter to make the
decision.
B.She does not care what the decision
turns out to be.
C.She knows her daughter will not take
her advice.
What does this hyperbole emphasize in
the sentence?
D.She would like to have the shell for
herself.
A.The grandmother cares a great deal
about material things.
B.The grandmother values her
granddaughter’s happiness.
11 In paragraph 13, what does the metaphor
●
“quick to nail a few planks of support to
C.The grandmother wants her
granddaughter to care about nature.
her decision” suggest to the reader?
D.The grandmother tries to act like all
the other grandmothers she knows.
A.The father wants to reinforce his
daughter’s choice.
B.The father is a skillful carpenter.
C.The daughter is easily influenced by
her grandmother.
13 Which of the following is a theme in
●
the excerpt?
D.The daughter is stubborn.
A.Parents must protect their children.
B.Every living thing is precious.
C.Material things are poor measures
of wealth.
D.Nature is dangerous as well as
beautiful.
17
Reading Comprehension
Session 1
Question 14 is an open-response question.
•Read the question carefully.
•Explain your answer.
•Add supporting details.
•Double-check your work.
Write your answer to question 14 in the space provided in your Student Answer Booklet.
14 Based on the excerpt, explain what conflict the narrator’s daughter faces and how her conflict is
●
resolved. Use relevant and specific information from the excerpt to support your answer.
18
English Language Arts
10_ELA1_05_F22_v5
2/20/05
Reading Comprehension: Session 2
10:59 AM
Page 20
DIRECTIONS
This session contains two reading selections with eleven multiple-choice questions and one
open-response
question.
Mark your answers to these questions in the spaces provided in your
Student2
English Language
Arts
Session
Answer Booklet.
Brothers1005L M
Kade’s father was a minor league pitcher until he crushed his thumb in a mill accident. He becomes bitter
and discouraged without baseball. Read this excerpt from the novel The Brothers K to find out how the
father plans to get baseball back in his life. Answer the questions that follow.
The Brothers K
by DAVID JAMES DUNCAN
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
O
ne day along about the time the big league teams were moving out of Florida and
Arizona and up into the cold with the rest of us, Papa and Roy drove home from the mill an
hour early, and out of Roy’s pickup unloaded the first really good clue as to the nature of
Papa’s building project: a load of clean topsoil, which they heaped right in the center of the
shed’s floorless floor. I knew at that moment that Papa was building a pitcher’s mound in
there. And I took some joy in this discovery. My joy was guarded, however, by a dozen or so
unanswerable questions which the mound raised, like welts, in my mind. For instance:
“What possible good will a pitcher’s mound in a manurey backyard hutch do him with the
rest of the ballpark, not to mention the team, completely missing?”
And “What good will any sort of mound anywhere do him with his pitching thumb still
dead as a doornail and his life still chained to a daily stint at the mill?”
Still, once I knew that the shed had to do with baseball—once I realized that he was
focusing (however fuzzily) on pitching, and that this new focus had him looking darned near
as happy as he looked insane—I kept my questions to myself. While the trapeze artist is
in mid-flip, while the tamer’s head is halfway down the lion, while the magician’s saw is
passing through the lady in the box, even the thickest kid in the audience knows it’s no time
for questions.
Papa eventually made his pitcher’s mound perfect. He spent four or five hours, two nights
in a row, painstakingly shaping, reshaping and tamping down the dirt with shovels and feet
and a big iron bar before he was satisfied enough to plant a pitcher’s rubber smack-dab on
the summit. Then—one balmy, half-mooned mid-April evening when my brothers were all
off at their various ball practices and Mama and the twins were inside the house—I suddenly
had Papa, his shed, and his happy insanity all to myself . . .
The first thing Papa did that night was drag the old wood extension ladder out from under
the house and lean it against the back wall of the garage. Next he stuck an electric drill and a
few other tools in his carpenter’s belt, climbed the ladder, and began wiring two lights in up
under the garage eave—spotlights this time, great big powerful ones. When he got them both
working he aimed their brilliant beams in a V straight down the wall, then tried—and failed—
to sound casual as he told me to grab a tape and check the distance from the pitcher’s rubber
to the spot where the beams struck the ground. “It’s a clue, Kade,” he said. “A good one.”
But I needed no clues. I’d finally pieced it together. This was no harebrained fraction of an
imaginary ballpark. It was something perfectly practical—assuming that its builder was a
pitcher. Papa’s backyard shed was an all-weather bullpen and the garage wall was simply its
backstop. He’d just built himself a warm, dry place in which to practice pitching year-round.
19 I said, “I don’t need a tape. I can eyeball it.
Trying to play it cool, and failing just like Papa,
It’s sixty feet six inches—exactly.”
few other tools in his carpenter’s belt, climbed the ladder, and began wiring two lights in up
under
the
garage eave—spotlights this time, great big powerful ones. When he got them
both 2
G10_ELA1_05_F22_v5
2/20/05 10:59 AM Page 21
Reading
Comprehension
Session
working he aimed their brilliant beams in a V straight down the wall, then tried—and failed—
to sound casual as he told me to grab a tape and check the distance from the pitcher’s rubber
to the spot where the beams struck the ground. “It’s a clue, Kade,” he said. “A good one.”
7
But I needed no clues. I’d finally pieced it together. This was no harebrained fraction of an
English
Language
ArtsIt was something perfectly practical—assuming that its builderSession
imaginary
ballpark.
was a 2
pitcher. Papa’s backyard shed was an all-weather bullpen and the garage wall was simply its
backstop. He’d just built himself a warm, dry place in which to practice pitching year-round.
Trying to play it cool, and failing just like Papa, I said, “I don’t need a tape. I can eyeball it.
It’s sixty feet six inches—exactly.”
8
He didn’t laugh when I said this. He barely even smiled. He just said, “A regular
Sherlock,” meaning Holmes, I guess, and tossed down his keys like I was sixteen and had
asked to borrow the car. “Bring back anything odd you might find in the trunk of the
Fortyford,” he said.
SECURE MATERIALS: DUPLICATION FORBIDDEN
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22 the trunk, and was
9
I ran round the house and down to the 20
car at the curb,
yanked open
not at all surprised to find a battered old home plate lying there. What did surprise me was
that the instant I picked it up, wham! yak butter . . . Papa’s whole project ceased to feel
arcane or mysterious and began instead to make a boy’s kind of sense. Common sense.
Baseball sense. Had it been a new plate I don’t know what I’d have felt, but something about
this beat-up matter-of-fact one made everything Papa was doing seem just as matter-of-fact.
Some sort of genuine athletic comeback was in the making here. I just knew it. I could taste
it. But only on the inside of me. Outside of me the whole project still seemed so crazy and
vulnerable that in order to protect it I carried that indestructible house-shaped old slab of
rubber back around the garage as if it were blown glass or precious china. “It won’t break,”
Papa laughed when he saw me coming. “You can pound it in yourself,” he added, “soon as
you’ve done the preliminary honors.”
10
I asked what honors those were. He pointed at the garden hoe and rake leaning against
the toolshed. “How about weeding me out a batter’s box?”
11
I set to work like a pirate who’s just found the X on the map. Meanwhile Papa went back
in the garage, and returned with a used twin mattress. When he’d spotted this pee-stained
relic at a Goodwill drop-box a few weeks back, he’d cried, “Perfect!” and tied it to the roof
of the car—causing my brothers and me to wonder yet again about his mental health. But
when he got it home he’d calmly covered it with two sheets of black plastic and a third layer
of rainproof Army surplus canvas, and now its purpose was obvious: padding and
soundproofing for his garage-wall backstop. Nailing two stout metal bookshelf brackets to
the wall, he hung the mattress from them by its handles.
12
He disappeared into the garage again, and this time was gone long enough for me to desod the “batter’s box,” pick out every last rock and weed, and work the dirt smooth as the
top of a fresh pumpkin pie by dragging the back of the rake over it again and again. While I
worked the day turned dusky without my noticing. But what I did notice, under the
spotlights, was the odd, half-canceled dual shadows that I was casting. They looked
uncannily familiar. I straightened up, tried to place them, couldn’t, and had just started
raking again when it hit me: they were almost exactly the sorts of shadows that ballplayers
cast at a night ballgame. Like a painter trying to get perspective, I backed away from my
efforts then, and was delighted to see that, at least in this light, my hokey handmade batter’s
box had truly begun to resemble a few square feet of bona fide bush league ball diamond.
And if a homemade batter’s box can get this real this fast, I thought, there’s no reason why Papa
can’t make it out of this yard, out of the mill, clear on out of this town and back into pro ball . . .
13
At which point I heard the school bus bringing my brothers home, my brain kicked in, our
yard turned back into a yard, and I mumbled aloud, “Naw. No way. Don’t be ridiculous.”
20
English
English
Language
Language
Arts Arts
Reading Comprehension
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
Session
Session
2
2
Session 2
“What’s
14
“What’s
ridiculous?”
ridiculous?”
Papa asked—and
Papa asked—and
I jumped.
I jumped.
I hadn’t
I hadn’t
heard heard
him slip
him
upslip
behind
up behind
me. me.
“Nothing!”
15
“Nothing!”
I snapped.
I snapped.
“Nothing’s
“Nothing’s
ridiculous!”
ridiculous!”
But heBut
looked
he looked
a littlea hurt,
little so
hurt,
I added,
so I added,
“You weren’t
“You weren’t
supposed
supposed
to heartoishear
all. Iiswas
all. thinking
I was thinking
out loud.”
out loud.”
“About
16
“About
what?”what?”
I17shrugged.
I shrugged.
“You and
“You
baseball.”
and baseball.”
“Oh,”
18
“Oh,”
he said.
he“Well.
said. “Well.
Me and
Me
baseball.
and baseball.
That isThat
ridiculous.”
is ridiculous.”
We
19 both
We began
both began
to laugh
to laugh
then, and
then,for
and
a moment
for a moment
that yak
thatbutter
yak butter
belief belief
in a comeback
in a comeback
filled me
filled
a second
me a second
time. But
time.right
But at
right
the at
height
the height
of it Papa
of itstopped
Papa stopped
laughing,
laughing,
lookedlooked
aroundaround
the yard,
the waved
yard, waved
a careless
a careless
hand at
hand
everything
at everything
we’d done,
we’d done,
and said,
and“You
said, know,
“You know,
Kade. Kade.
This This
whole whole
thing, thing,
this shed
this business,
shed business,
it really
it is
really
ridiculous.”
is ridiculous.”
Then he
Then
smiled—and
he smiled—and
sadly, sadly,
almostalmost
shyly added,
shyly added,
“But Vera
“Butsays
Veraher
says
stupid
her stupid
prayersprayers
no matter
no matter
what. Right?”
what. Right?”
.20. . It. was
. . Ita was
gesture,
a gesture,
a wonderful
a wonderful
gesture.
gesture.
But a But
gesture
a gesture
nonetheless.
nonetheless.
“Look,“Look,
Kade,”Kade,”
he
he
said, reaching
said, reaching
down down
and squeezing
and squeezing
my sagging
my sagging
shoulders.
shoulders.
“My situation,
“My situation,
baseball-wise,
baseball-wise,
is
is
hopeless.”
hopeless.”
My
21 throat
My throat
began began
to close.
to Iclose.
looked
I looked
away to
away
hidetothe
hide
welling
the welling
in my in
eyes.
my eyes.
“The
22
thing
“The is,”
thing
heis,”
said,
he“I
said,
don’t
“I don’t
want you
wantgetting
you getting
workedworked
up over
upnothing
over nothing
when Iwhen
start I start
spending
spending
time out
timehere.
out Ihere.
builtI this
builtshed
this because
shed because
throwing
throwing
baseballs
baseballs
keeps keeps
my head
my on
head on
straight.
straight.
I did not
I did
build
not itbuild
to inaugurate
it to inaugurate
some sort
someofsort
fairytale
of fairytale
comeback.
comeback.
Do you
Do
understand
you understand
that?” that?”
I23stared
I stared
at the at
little
thepiece
little of
piece
diamond
of diamond
we’d just
we’d
made.
just made.
“No
24
matter
“No matter
how well
howI well
may Ieventually
may eventually
seem to
seem
be throwing,
to be throwing,
and noand
matter
no matter
what your
whatallyour allknowing
knowing
brother
brother
EverettEverett
may say,
mayallsay,
I’mallever
I’m gonna
ever gonna
do outdohere
out ishere
tossisthe
tosspitcher’s
the pitcher’s
equivalent
equivalent
of harelip
of harelip
prayers.
prayers.
Okay?”Okay?”
My
25 tongue
My tongue
felt thick
feltand
thick
dry
and
now—not
dry now—not
a hint aofhint
yak of
butter
yak butter
anywhere.
anywhere.
“Don’t
26
“Don’t
think of
think
it asofbaseball,
it as baseball,
Kade. Kade.
Call itCall
my it
hobby,
my hobby,
or some
or weird
some weird
kind ofkind
worship
of worship
maybe.maybe.
Call itCall
psalmball,
it psalmball,
or shedball,
or shedball,
or thumbball
or thumbball
if youiflike.
you But
like.remember
But remember
it’s not
it’s not
baseball.
baseball.
It’s notIt’s
a comeback.
not a comeback.
You’veYou’ve
got to got
promise
to promise
me that.”
me that.”
A
27 lump
A of
lump
sandstone
of sandstone
lay in my
lay in
throat.
my throat.
I couldn’t
I couldn’t
speak. speak.
But heBut
waited.
he waited.
He waited
He waited
till ourtill our
eyes met,
eyesthen
met,bent
thenmy
bent
will
mylike
willanlike
armanwrestler
arm wrestler
bends bends
a wrist:a wrist:
I had Itohad
nodtotonod
keep
to from
keep from
breaking.
breaking.
“Okay,”
“Okay,”
he said,
hehanding
said, handing
me hisme
hammer.
his hammer.
“Let’s “Let’s
poundpound
in thatinplate.”
that plate.”
We
28 did
Weso.did
Butso.I But
tookI no
took
pleasure
no pleasure
in it now.
in it And
now.when
And when
Papa stepped
Papa stepped
back and
backsighed,
and sighed,
“That’s
“That’s
it, suchit,assuch
it is as
. . it.”ishe
. .just
.” he
looked
just looked
like a worn-out
like a worn-out
millworker.
millworker.
... ...
From THE
From
BROTHERS
THE BROTHERS
K by David
K by
James
David
Duncan,
James copyright
Duncan, copyright
© 1992 by
© David
1992 by
James
David
Duncan.
James Used
Duncan.
by permission
Used by permission
of Doubleday,
of Doubleday,
a
a
division of
division
Random
of House,
RandomInc.
House, Inc.
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22
Reading Comprehension
Session 2
15 According to the excerpt, why is Kade’s
●
father building a place to pitch?
17 Reread paragraph 9. Why does Kade carry
●
the home plate so carefully?
A. He needs to regain the strength in his
injured hand.
A. It is old and very fragile.
B. It comes from the ballpark where
Papa pitched.
B. He needs pitching to help him through
daily life.
C. It represents his athletic talents.
C. He wants to teach Kade everything he
knows about pitching.
D. It symbolizes his hopes for Papa’s
comeback.
D. He finally feels ready to try to become
a pro ball player again.
16 Which of the following quotations
●
best shows the importance of the
project to Papa?
A. “. . . Papa and Roy drove home from
the mill an hour early, and out of Roy’s
pickup unloaded the first really good
clue . . .” (paragraph 1)
B. “He spent four or five hours, two
nights in a row, painstakingly shaping,
reshaping and tamping down the
dirt . . .” (paragraph 5)
C. “Next he stuck an electric drill and
a few other tools in his carpenter’s
belt . . .” (paragraph 6)
D. “. . . Papa stopped laughing, looked
around the yard, waved a careless
hand . . .” (paragraph 19)
22
Reading Comprehension
Session 2
18 What do the narrator’s italicized thoughts
●
in paragraph 12 reveal about him?
20 Which of the following best describes the
●
difference between Kade and Papa in the
excerpt?
A. They show that he loves baseball
more than anything else.
A. Kade is stubborn while Papa
is patient.
B. They explain the inner conflict
he feels.
B. Kade is hopeful while Papa
is realistic.
C. They express his deepest wish for
his father.
C. Papa is hardworking while Kade
is lazy.
D. They show he is a thinker rather
than a person of action.
D. Papa has finished his baseball career
while Kade is just beginning his.
19 Based on the excerpt, why does Papa
●
suggest Kade should call what he does
21 The excerpt begins and ends with a
●
mention of the mill. What does this
in the bullpen “psalmball, or shedball,
or thumbball”?
suggest to the reader?
A. He knows Kade is upset and wants to
make him laugh.
A. how important the mill is to the
survival of Kade’s family
B. He takes pride in being a little bit
different from everyone else.
B. that the materials for Papa’s bullpen
come from the mill
C. He wants Kade to accept that he will
never play pro baseball again.
C. how Papa’s job at the mill is a source
of conflict between him and Kade
D. He wants Kade to know he does not
want an audience when he is in the
bullpen.
D. the reality that Papa is a millworker
rather than a ballplayer
23
Reading Comprehension
Session 2
Question 22 is an open-response question.
•Read the question carefully.
•Explain your answer.
•Add supporting details.
•Double-check your work.
Write your answer to question 22 in the space provided in your Student Answer Booklet.
22 Describe how Kade’s feelings change over the course of the excerpt. Use relevant and specific
●
information from the excerpt to support your answer.
24
Reading Comprehension
Session 2
In the following poem, the speaker and her mother struggle to make a decision. Read the poem and answer
the questions that follow.
The Black Walnut Tree
Students read a selection titled “The Black Walnut Tree” and then answered
questions 23 through 26 that follow on pages 26–27 of this document.
Due to copyright restrictions, the selection cannot be released to the public
over the Internet. For more information, see the copyright citation below.
From TWELVE MOONS by Mary Oliver. Copyright © 1972, 1973, 1974, 1976, 1977,
1978, 1979 by Mary Oliver. By permission of Little, Brown and Co.
25
Reading Comprehension
Session 2
Due to copyright restrictions, the selection that appeared on this page
cannot be released to the public over the Internet. For more information, see
the citation on the previous page.
23 What is the main purpose of lines 1–5
●
of the poem?
24 In line 1, the speaker states that “My
●
mother and I debate.” She is indicating
A. to describe the setting
that they debate
B. to establish the conflict
A. with the lumberman.
C. to reveal a family secret
B. about the fate of their tree.
D. to suggest a universal truth
C. with the mortgage bankers.
D. about the condition of their cellar
drains.
26
Reading Comprehension
Session 2
25 In lines 27–28, why does the speaker most
●
likely confess that she and her mother
26 Read lines 30–35 of the poem in the
●
box below.
would “crawl with shame / in the
emptiness we’d made”?
So the black walnut tree
swings through another year
of sun and leaping winds,
of leaves and bounding fruit,
and, month after month, the whipcrack of the mortgage.
A. They would have lost a piece of their
heritage.
B. They would have lowered the value of
their home.
C. They would be embarrassed in front of
their neighbors.
What is emphasized by the metaphor in
the last two lines?
D. They would regret the loss of shade
provided by the tree.
A. the sacrifices necessary to keep
the tree
B. the pleasure the tree brings to
the speaker
C. the appearance of the tree during
different seasons
D. the income the tree produces for
the speaker and her mother
27
English Language Arts
Reading Comprehension: Session 3
DIRECTIONS
This session contains two reading selections with thirteen multiple-choice questions and one
open-response question. Mark your answers to these questions in the spaces provided in your
Student Answer Booklet.
In the following essay about hummingbirds, author Diane Ackerman helps to explain the widespread
fascination with these tiny birds. Read the essay and answer the questions that follow.
Mute Dancers: How to Watch a Hummingbird
by DIANE ACKERMAN
1
2
3
A lot of hummingbirds die in their sleep. Like a small fury of iridescence, a hummingbird
spends the day at high speed, darting and swiveling among thousands of nectar-rich blossoms.
Hummingbirds have huge hearts and need colossal amounts of energy to fuel their flights, so
they live in a perpetual mania to find food. They tend to prefer red, trumpet-shaped flowers,
in which nectar thickly oozes, and eat every 15 minutes or so. A hummingbird drinks with
a W-shaped tongue, licking nectar up as a cat might (but faster). Like a tiny drum roll, its
heart beats at 500 times a minute. Frighten a hummingbird and its heart can race to over
1,200 times a minute. Feasting and flying, courting and dueling, hummingbirds consume life
at a fever pitch. No warm-blooded animal on earth uses more energy, for its size. But that
puts them at great peril. By day’s end, wrung-out and exhausted, a hummingbird rests near
collapse.
In the dark night of the hummingbird, it can sink into a zombielike state of torpor; its
breathing grows shallow and its wild heart slows to only 36 beats a minute. When dawn
breaks on the fuchsia and columbine,1 hummingbirds must jump-start their hearts and fire
up their flight muscles to raise their body temperature for another all-or-nothing day. That
demands a colossal effort, which some can’t manage. So a lot of hummingbirds die in their
sleep.
But most do bestir themselves. This is why, in American Indian myths and legends,
hummingbirds are often depicted as resurrection birds, which seem to die and be reborn
on another day or in another season. The Aztec2 god of war was named Huitzilopochtli, a
compound word meaning “shining one with weapon like cactus thorn,” and “sorcerer that spits
fire.” Aztec warriors fought, knowing that if they fell in battle they would be reincarnated as
glittery, thuglike hummingbirds. The male birds were lionized 3 for their ferocity in battle. And
1
fuchsia and columbine — plants with showy flowers
Aztec — the Native American people who dominated northern Mexico in the early sixteenth century
3
lionized — regarded with great respect
2
28
Reading Comprehension
4
5
6
7
8
Session 3
their feathers flashed in the sun like jewel-encrusted shields. Aztec rulers donned ceremonial
robes of hummingbird feathers. As they walked, colors danced across their shoulders and
bathed them in a supernatural light show.
While most birds are busy singing a small operetta of who and what and where,
hummingbirds are virtually mute. Such small voices don’t carry far, so they don’t bother
much with song. But if they can’t serenade a mate, or yell war cries at a rival, how can they
perform the essential dramas of their lives? They dance. Using body language, they spell out
their intentions and moods, just as bees, fireflies or hula dancers do. That means elaborate
aerial ballets in which males twirl, joust, sideswipe and somersault. Brazen and fierce, they
will take on large adversaries—even cats, dogs or humans.
My neighbor Persis once told me how she’d been needled by hummingbirds. When Persis
lived in San Francisco, hummingbirds often attacked her outside her apartment building.
From their perspective she was on their property, not the other way round, and they flew
circles around her to vex her away. My encounters with hummingbirds have been altogether
more benign. Whenever I’ve walked through South American rain forests, with my hair
braided and secured by a waterproof red ribbon, hummingbirds have assumed my ribbon to
be a succulent flower and have probed my hair repeatedly, searching for nectar. Their touch
was as delicate as a sweat bee’s. But it was their purring by my ear that made me twitch. In
time, they would leave unfed, but for a while I felt like a character in a Li’l Abner cartoon
who could be named something like “Hummer.” In Portuguese, the word for hummingbird
(Beija flor) means “flower kisser.” It was the American colonists who first imagined the birds
humming as they went about their chores.
Last summer, the historical novelist Jeanne Mackin winced to see her cat, Beltane, drag in
voles, birds and even baby rabbits. Few things can compete with the blood lust of a tabby cat.
But one day Beltane dragged in something rare and shimmery—a struggling hummingbird.
The feathers were ruffled and there was a bit of blood on the breast, but the bird still looked
perky and alive. So Jeanne fashioned a nest for it out of a small wire basket lined in gauze,
and fed it sugar water from an eye dropper. To her amazement, as she watched, “it miscarried
a little pearl.” Hummingbird eggs are the size of coffee beans, and females usually carry two.
So Jeanne knew one might still be safe inside. After a quiet night, the hummingbird seemed
stronger, and when she set the basket outside at dawn, the tiny assault victim flew away.
It was a ruby-throated hummingbird that she nursed, the only one native to the East Coast.
In the winter they migrate thousands of miles over mountains and open water to Mexico and
South America. She may well have been visited by a species known to the Aztecs. Altogether,
there are 16 species of hummingbirds in North America, and many dozens in South America,
especially near the equator, where they can feed on a buffet of blossoms. The tiniest—the
Cuban bee hummingbird—is the smallest warm-blooded animal in the world. About two and
one-eighth inches long from beak to tail, it is smaller than the toe of an eagle, and its eggs are
like seeds.
Hummingbirds are a New World phenomenon. So, too, is vanilla, and their stories are
linked. When the early explorers returned home with the riches of the West, they found it
impossible, to their deep frustration, to grow vanilla beans. It took ages before they discovered
why—that hummingbirds were a key pollinator of vanilla orchids—and devised beaklike
splinters of bamboo to do the work of birds.
29
Reading Comprehension
9
4
5
Session 3
Now that summer has come at last, lucky days may be spent watching the antics of
hummingbirds. The best way to behold them is to stand with the light behind you, so that the
bird faces the sun. Most of the trembling colors aren’t true pigments, but the result of light
staggering through clear cells that act as prisms. Hummingbirds are iridescent for the same
reason soap bubbles are. Each feather contains tiny air bubbles separated by dark spaces.
Light bounces off the air bubbles at different angles, and that makes blazing colors seem to
swarm and leap. All is vanity in the end. The male’s shimmer draws a female to mate. But
that doesn’t matter much to gardeners, watching hummingbirds patrol the impatiens4 as if the
northern lights5 had suddenly fallen to earth.
impatiens — a popular garden plant
the northern lights — bands of colored light that appear in the sky, most often in the Arctic region
Copyright © 1994 by Diane Ackerman. Reprinted by permission of William Morris Agency, LLC on behalf of the Author.
ID:254121 B Common
27
●
ID:254077 A Common
28
●
What quality of a hummingbird is most
emphasized by the author’s use of the
words “darting” and “swiveling” in
paragraph 1?
Read the sentence from paragraph 1 in the
box below.
Feasting and flying, courting and
dueling, hummingbirds consume life
at a fever pitch.
A. the gleam of its feathers
B. the speed of its movements
C. its attraction to bright blossoms
D. its hostility toward other animals
What does the sentence mainly suggest
about hummingbirds?
A. The lives of hummingbirds are
purposeful and hectic.
B. Hummingbirds must eat large amounts
of food to survive.
C. Hummingbirds are capable of doing
many things at the same time.
D. The habits and activities of
hummingbirds are like those of people.
30
Reading Comprehension
Session 3
ID:254128 A Common
ID:254080 C Common
29
●
31
●
According to paragraph 2, why does it
take a “colossal effort” for a hummingbird
to rouse itself each morning?
A. It becomes overheated while it is
sleeping.
A. They have voices that are barely
audible.
B. Its ability to fly lessens when it is
inactive.
B. They are physically unable to produce
sound.
C. Its heart rate drops radically during
the night.
C. Their dance is more expressive than
the songs of other birds.
D. It consumes extremely large quantities
of food.
D. Their wings are better built for flight
than those of other birds.
ID:254085 A Common
ID:254084 C Common
30
●
According to paragraph 4, why do
hummingbirds express themselves through
“body language” rather than song?
32
●
According to paragraph 3, what is the
main connection between hummingbirds
and Aztec warriors?
According to paragraph 7, the Cuban bee
hummingbird is most remarkable for its
A. size.
A. The warriors believed that male
hummingbirds could spit fire.
B. speed.
B. The warriors carried shields decorated
with hummingbird feathers.
D. ruby-colored throat.
C. warm blood.
C. The warriors believed that they would
be reborn as hummingbirds.
D. The warriors carried hummingbird
feathers to increase their luck in battle.
31
Reading Comprehension
Session 3
ID:254132 D Common
33
●
ID:254134 B Common
34
●
Read the sentence from paragraph 2 in the
box below.
Which of the following is most likely the
root of the word iridescent in paragraph 9?
A. ira, meaning “anger”
In the dark night of the hummingbird,
it can sink into a zombielike state of
torpor; its breathing grows shallow
and its wild heart slows to only 36
beats a minute.
B. iris, meaning “rainbow”
C. cent, meaning “hundred”
D. descrive, meaning “perceive”
What is the best synonym for the word
torpor as it is used in the sentence?
A. fear
B. cold
C. boredom
D. inactivity
Question 35 is an open-response question.
•Read the question carefully.
•Explain your answer.
•Add supporting details.
•Double-check your work.
Write your answer to question 35 in the space provided in your Student Answer Booklet.
ID:254136 Common
35
●
Describe the types of information the author uses to give the reader a clear understanding
of hummingbirds. Support your answer with relevant and specific details from the essay.
32
Reading Comprehension
Session 3
In this scene from Act One of Arthur Miller’s play A View from the Bridge, Eddie Carbone, a dock worker,
is with his wife Beatrice and his niece Catherine in the dining room of the Carbones’ Brooklyn apartment.
Catherine was raised by her aunt and uncle after her mother died, and she is currently attending
secretarial school. Read the scene and answer the questions that follow.
from
A View from the Bridge
by Arthur Miller
Students read a selection from A View from the Bridge and then answered
questions 36 through 40 that follow on pages 36–37 of this document.
Due to copyright restrictions, the selection cannot be released to the public
over the Internet. For more information, see the copyright citation below.
From A View from the Bridge by Arthur Miller, copyright © 1955, 1957,
renewed © 1983, 1985 by Arthur Miller. Used by permission of Viking Penguin,
a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
33
Reading Comprehension
Session 3
Due to copyright restrictions, the selection that appeared on this page
cannot be released to the public over the Internet. For more information, see
the citation on the previous page.
34
Reading Comprehension
Session 3
Due to copyright restrictions, the selection that appeared on this page
cannot be released to the public over the Internet. For more information, see
the citation on page 33.
35
Reading Comprehension
Session 3
Due to copyright restrictions, the selection that appeared on this page
cannot be released to the public over the Internet. For more information, see
the citation on page 33.
ID:253406 A Common
36
●
ID:253408 C Common
37
●
What is the main conflict in the scene?
A. Eddie is worried about Catherine’s
choice of job.
Read lines 95–96 from the scene in the
box below.
Eddie, smiling but hurt: I only ask
you one thing—don’t trust nobody.
You got a good aunt but she’s got too
big a heart, you learned bad from her.
Believe me.
B. Beatrice resents the concern Eddie
feels for Catherine.
C. Catherine is angered by Eddie’s
over-protective nature.
D. Catherine dislikes having to support
Eddie and Beatrice.
What does Eddie most likely mean when
he says these words to Catherine?
A. He thinks Beatrice raised Catherine to
spend money generously.
B. He thinks Beatrice taught Catherine to
learn from her experiences.
C. He thinks Beatrice led Catherine to
place too much faith in others.
D. He thinks Beatrice encouraged
Catherine to leave school before
finishing.
36
Reading Comprehension
Session 3
ID:253414 A Common
38
●
ID:254035 D Common
40
●
Which statement best describes Beatrice’s
treatment of Catherine in the scene?
A. Beatrice supports Catherine’s choice.
A. to introduce comments that explain
characters’ thoughts
B. Beatrice worries excessively about
Catherine.
B. to introduce ideas that are less
important than the main idea
C. Beatrice belittles Catherine’s attempts
to help.
C. to indicate that certain lines are to be
spoken simultaneously
D. Beatrice insists that Catherine take her
advice.
D. to indicate that a character’s line is
interrupted by another line
ID:254033 D Common
39
●
What is the purpose of the use of dashes
in lines 11 and 13?
Based on the scene, what is the most
likely reason Eddie finally tells Catherine
to take the job?
A. Eddie works near where Catherine
will be working.
B. Eddie admires the skills Catherine
has demonstrated.
C. Eddie knows Catherine will be
working in a nice office.
D. Eddie understands he must let
Catherine make her own decision.
37
English Language Arts
Language and Literature Retest
November 2007 Released Items:
Reporting Categories, Standards, and Correct Answers*
Item No.
Page No.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
11
11
11
11
12
12
12
12
13
17
17
17
17
18
22
22
22
23
23
23
23
24
26
26
27
27
30
30
31
31
31
31
32
32
32
36
36
37
37
37
Reporting Category
Reading and Literature
Reading and Literature
Reading and Literature
Reading and Literature
Reading and Literature
Reading and Literature
Language
Language
Reading and Literature
Reading and Literature
Reading and Literature
Reading and Literature
Reading and Literature
Reading and Literature
Reading and Literature
Reading and Literature
Reading and Literature
Reading and Literature
Reading and Literature
Reading and Literature
Reading and Literature
Reading and Literature
Reading and Literature
Reading and Literature
Reading and Literature
Reading and Literature
Reading and Literature
Reading and Literature
Reading and Literature
Reading and Literature
Reading and Literature
Reading and Literature
Language
Language
Reading and Literature
Reading and Literature
Reading and Literature
Reading and Literature
Reading and Literature
Language
Standard
8
8
15
8
13
13
4
5
13
8
15
12
11
12
8
12
12
12
12
12
12
12
14
8
14
14
15
13
8
8
8
8
4
4
13
17
17
17
17
5
Correct Answer
(MC)*
B
C
A
C
C
D
D
B
A
A
B
B
B
B
D
C
C
B
D
B
B
A
A
B
A
C
C
A
A
D
B
A
C
A
D
D
* Answers are provided here for multiple-choice items only. Each open-response item has its own set of scoring guidelines, which
allow for valid alternate interpretations and responses.
38
III. Mathematics Retest
Mathematics Retest
The Mathematics Retest was based on learning standards in the Massachusetts Mathematics
Curriculum Framework (2000). The Framework identifies five major content strands, listed below.
■ Number Sense and Operations
■ Patterns, Relations, and Algebra
■ Geometry
■ Measurement
■ Data Analysis, Statistics, and Probability
The grades 9–10 learning standards for these strands appear on pages 72–75 of the Mathematics
Curriculum Framework, which is available on the Department Web site at www.doe.mass.edu/
frameworks/current.html.
In Test Item Analysis Reports, Mathematics retest results are reported under five MCAS reporting
categories, which are identical to the five Mathematics Curriculum Framework content strands listed
above.
Test Sessions
The Mathematics Retest included two separate test sessions, which were administered on consecutive
days. Each session included multiple-choice and open-response items. Session 1 also included short-answer
questions.
Reference Materials and Tools
Each student taking the Mathematics Retest was provided with a Grade 10 Mathematics Reference
Sheet and was allowed to refer to it at any time during testing. A copy of the reference sheet follows the
final question in this chapter.
During session 2, each student had sole access to a calculator with at least four functions and a square
root key. Calculator use was not allowed during session 1.
The use of bilingual word-to-word dictionaries was allowed for limited English proficient students only
during both Mathematics retest sessions. No other reference tools or materials were allowed.
Cross-Reference Information
The table at the conclusion of this chapter indicates each item’s reporting category and the Framework
learning standard it assesses. The correct answers for multiple-choice and short-answer items are also
displayed in the table.
40
Mathematics
Session 1
You may use your reference sheet during this session.
You may not use a calculator during this session.
DIRECTIONS
This session contains fourteen multiple-choice questions, four short-answer questions, and
three open-response questions. Mark your answers to these questions in the spaces provided in
your Student Answer Booklet.
1
●
2
●
What is the value of the expression
below?
3(42  2)
Jamison is taking a friend to the movies.
He wants to estimate the amount of
money he will need for tickets, large
bags of popcorn, and large cups of soda.
The prices are shown below.
A. 18
Ticket
Large bag of popcorn
Large cup of soda
B. 22
C. 42
D. 46
Which of the following is closest to the
amount of money Jamison will need for
2 tickets, 2 large bags of popcorn, and
2 large cups of soda?
A. $34
B. $30
C. $24
D. $20
41
$7.75
$3.85
$2.65
Mathematics
3
●
Session 1
5
●
Which of the following is equivalent to
the expression below?
x2  3x  5x2  6
Which of the following is closest to the
value of 72 ?
A. 8.1
B. 8.5
A. 4x2  3x  6
C. 8.9
B. 4x2  3x  6
D. 9.3
C. x2  2x  6
D. x2  2x  6
6
●
4
●
Each week, Shanice deposits a total of $50
into her checking account and does not
withdraw any money. Her account does
not earn interest. At the end of 3 weeks,
the total amount of money in Shanice’s
account was $170.
What is the value of x in the solution to
the following system of equations?
x y  5
2x  6 y  22
A. x  4
B. x  3
C. x  2
Which of the following equations
represents y, the total amount of money in
Shanice’s account at the end of x weeks?
D. x  1
A. y  50x  20
B. y  20x  50
C. y  50x  20
D. y  20x  50
42
Mathematics
7
●
Session 1
9
●
Which of the following sets of data has
a median of 17.5?
Which of the following shows the
expression below in factored form?
4 y3  6 y2  14 y
A. {10.0, 17.5, 14.0, 16.0, 27.5}
B. {12.5, 26.0, 17.5, 11.5, 10.5}
A. 2 y (2 y2  3y  7)
C. {13.0, 17.5, 15.0, 15.5, 17.5}
B. 4 y ( y2  2 y  10)
D. {14.5, 19.5, 16.0, 17.5, 24.0}
C. 2 y2(2 y  3  7 y)
D. 4 y2( y  2  10 y)
8
●
Which of the following equations best
represents the line of best fit for the
data shown in the scatterplot below?
10
●
y
What is the value of the expression
below?
4 3  5
28
A. 32
24
B. 8
20
C. 8
16
D. 32
12
8
4
0
x
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
A. y  2.5x  1
B. y  2.5x  1
C. y  0.6x  1
D. y  0.6x  1
43
Mathematics
11
●
Session 1
13
●
What is the value of the expression
below?
(
3
125
)
Which of the following best represents
the slope and y-intercept of the line on
the coordinate grid below?
3
y
6
5
4
3
2
1
A. 5
B. 25
C. 75
D. 125
12
●
The table below shows a relationship
between values of x and y.
x
y
-6 -5 -4 -3 -2 -1 0
-1
-2
-3
-4
-5
-6
1
3
2
10
3
29
4
66
1 2 3 4 5 6
1
A. slope =  2 ; y-intercept = 2
Which of the following equations
describes the relationship between x and y
for the values in the table?
1
B. slope = 2 ; y-intercept = 2
1
C. slope =  2 ; y-intercept = 4
A. y  3x
B. y  3x  4
D. slope = 12 ; y-intercept = 4
2
C. y  x  2
D. y  x 3  2
14
●
If x  0, which of the following is
closest to the value of x that makes the
equation below true?
2x2  40
A. 3.2
B. 4.5
C. 6.3
D. 8.9
44
x
Mathematics
Session 1
Questions 15 and 16 are short-answer questions. Write your answers to these questions in the boxes
provided in your Student Answer Booklet. Do not write your answers in this test booklet. You may do
your figuring in the test booklet.
15
●
A box in the shape of a right rectangular prism has a volume of 60 cubic inches. The height
of the box is 3 inches, and the width is 4 inches.
What is the length, in inches, of the box?
16
●
Brian set up a birdhouse, a birdbath, and a bird feeder in his backyard. The vertices of the
triangle shown below represent the locations of these three objects in his backyard.
Birdhouse
60 ft.
80 ft.
Birdbath
Bird feeder
Based on the distances shown, what is the distance, in feet, between the birdhouse and the
bird feeder?
45
Mathematics
Session 1
Question 17 is an open-response question.
• BE SURE TO ANSWER AND LABEL ALL PARTS OF THE QUESTION.
• Show all your work (diagrams, tables, or computations) in your Student Answer Booklet.
•If you do the work in your head, explain in writing how you did the work.
Write your answer to question 17 in the space provided in your Student Answer Booklet.
17
●
Laurie’s parents gave her $25 to open a checking account. At the end of each week after the
account was opened, Laurie deposited $20 into her checking account. No other money was
deposited into or withdrawn from the checking account.
a. What was the total amount of money in Laurie’s checking account at the end of week 5?
Show or explain how you got your answer.
b. On the grid in your Student Answer Booklet, plot six points with coordinates (x, y), in
which x and y are defined as follows:
• x  the number of weeks since the account was opened (in whole numbers
from 0 through 5), where x  0 corresponds to the opening of the account
• y  the total amount of money in the account at the end of week x
Be sure to label the x-axis and y-axis, indicate the scale on each axis, and include a title
for your graph.
c. Write an equation that represents the line that passes through all the points plotted in
part (b). Show or explain how you determined your equation.
d. For the line represented by your equation in part (c), explain the meaning of the y-intercept
in the context of this problem.
46
Mathematics
Session 1
Questions 18 and 19 are short-answer questions. Write your answers to these questions in the boxes
provided in your Student Answer Booklet. Do not write your answers in this test booklet. You may do
your figuring in the test booklet.
18
●
What is the value of x that makes the linear equation below true?
3x  5  2(x  3)
19
●
The diagram below shows a square in the interior of a rectangle.
12 feet
4 feet
4 feet
10 feet
Based on the dimensions in the diagram, what is the area, in square feet, of the shaded region
of the rectangle?
47
M
Questions 0 and 1 are open-response questions.
•
•
•
BE SUrE to AnSWEr AnD LABEL ALL PArtS oF EACH QUEStion.
Show all your work (diagrams, tables, or computations) in your Student Answer Booklet.
if you do the work in your head, explain in writing how you did the work.
Write your answer to question 0 in the space provided in your Student Answer Booklet.
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
Figure 4
The table below shows the number of dots needed for each of Figures 1 through 4.
number of Dots per Figure
Figure number
1
2
3
4
number of
Dots
1
4
9
16
5
6
7
8
a. Copy the table into your Student Answer Booklet. Complete your table by writing the
number of dots needed for each of Figures 5 through 8. Show or explain how you got
each of your answers.
b. Based on the pattern, what number of dots will be needed for Figure n? Show or explain
how you got your answer.
c. What number of dots will be needed for Figure 20? Show or explain how you got your
answer.
d. If Figure n has exactly 225 dots, what is the value of n? Explain your reasoning.
48
Mathematics
Session 1
Write your answer to question 21 in the space provided in your Student Answer Booklet.
21
●
Triangle ABC and the coordinates of each vertex of the triangle are shown on the coordinate
grid below.
y
9
8
7
B (3, 6)
6
5
4
A (–5, 2)
3
2
1
-9 -8 -7 -6 -5 -4 -3 -2 -1 0
-1
-2
-3
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
x
C (1, –2)
-4
-5
-6
-7
-8
-9
a. Let M be the midpoint of AC . What are the coordinates of M ? Show your work.
b. Let N be the midpoint of BC . What are the coordinates of N ? Show your work.
c. What is the length of MN ? Show your work. (You may leave your answer as a square
root of a number.)
d. What is the slope of the line that contains both point M and point N ? Show your work.
e. Write an equation representing the line that contains both point M and point N. Show
your work.
49
Mathematics
Session 2
You may use your reference sheet during this session.
You may use a calculator during this session.
DIRECTIONS
This session contains eighteen multiple-choice questions and three open-response questions. Mark
your answers to these questions in the spaces provided in your Student Answer Booklet.
22
●
23
●
A stadium has seats that are arranged
into sections. In each section, the seats
are arranged into rows. There are
11 sections, 7 rows in each section, and
10 seats in each row.
B. 2.5
At a baseball game in the stadium, all
of the seats are occupied. A seat will
be chosen at random, and a prize will
be awarded to the person sitting in that
seat. If Hoda is sitting in one of the
seats, what is the probability that she
will win the prize?
C. 3.75
A.
1
770
B.
3
770
C.
1
28
The number of hours Nadia spent
painting each day during a one-week
period are shown below.
1.5, 4.25, 1.0, 3.75, 6.0, 0.75, 0.25
What is the mean number of hours
per day that Nadia spent painting for
this week?
A. 1.5
D. 5.75
D. 3
28
50
Mathematics
24
●
Session 2
26
●
A candle in the shape of a right circular
cylinder is pictured below.
• The front of the actual building is
in the shape of a rectangle with a
height of 21 feet and a width of
15 feet.
23 cm
• The height of the building in
Hector’s drawing is 3.5 inches, and
the width is 2.5 inches.
14.8 cm
What scale factor did Hector use in his
scale drawing?
Based on the dimensions shown in the
picture, which of the following is closest
to the lateral surface area of the candle?
A. 1 inch : 2 feet
A. 46 cm2
C. 1 inch : 6 feet
B. 170 cm2
D. 1 inch : 8.4 feet
B. 1 inch : 4.3 feet
C. 1100 cm2
D. 4000 cm2
25
●
Hector made a scale drawing of the
front of a building.
If x ≠ 0, which of the following
expressions belongs in the box below to
make the equation true?
(– 2x) • ?
A. 
1
2x
B. 
x
2
=1
2
C. x
D. 2x
51
Mathematics
27
●
Session 2
28
●
Which of the following figures appears
to have 2 lines of symmetry?
A.
The diagram below represents five of
Gina’s classrooms and the paths between
them. The classrooms are labeled
P, Q, R, S, and T. The length, in yards,
of each path is shown.
P
25
Q
8
B.
12
11
T
R
12
C.
20
10
S
D.
Gina needs to pick up homework
assignments from each of the five
classrooms. She begins at classroom P.
What is the minimum distance she can
walk along the paths so that she stops
once at each of the remaining four
classrooms without taking any path more
than once?
A. 31 yards
B. 42 yards
C. 49 yards
D. 59 yards
52
Mathematics
29
●
Session 2
30
●
Which of the following is equivalent to
the expression below?
(3x  2)(x  1)
Which of the following is closest to the
area of a circle that has a diameter of
8 centimeters?
A.  12.56 cm2
A. 3x 2  2
B.  25.12 cm2
B. 4x 2  3
C.  50.24 cm2
C. 3x 2  5x  2
D. 200.96 cm2
D. 4x 2  5x  2
53
Mathematics
Session 2
Question 31 is an open-response question.
• BE SURE TO ANSWER AND LABEL ALL PARTS OF THE QUESTION.
• Show all your work (diagrams, tables, or computations) in your Student Answer Booklet.
•If you do the work in your head, explain in writing how you did the work.
Write your answer to question 31 in the space provided in your Student Answer Booklet.
31
●
Aimee, Darlene, Percy, and Sinclair went bowling. Their scores for 4 games are shown in the
table below.
Bowling Scores
Name
Aimee
Darlene
Percy
Sinclair
Game 1
165
120
115
150
Scores
Game 2
Game 3
140
170
140
125
130
160
150
150
Game 4
130
140
160
165
a. What is the range of Aimee’s scores for the 4 games? Show or explain how you got your
answer.
b. Who had the greatest median score for the 4 games? Show or explain how you got your
answer.
c. Who had the greatest mean score for the 4 games? Show or explain how you got your
answer.
d. After Darlene bowled 2 more games, her mean score for all 6 games was 135. What
could her scores for each of those 2 games have been? Show or explain how you got your
answer.
54
Mathematics
Session 2
Mark your answers to multiple-choice questions 32 through 40 in the spaces provided in
your Student Answer Booklet. Do not write your answers in this test booklet. You may do your
figuring in the test booklet.
32
●
33
●
In the figure below, PQ SR , and PR
and QS intersect at point T.
P
62°
A right square pyramid and its
dimensions are shown below.
5 cm
Q
4 cm
T
S
40°
6 cm
R
Based on the angle measures in the
figure, what is the measure of STR ?
What is the volume of the right square
pyramid?
A.  40 cm3
A.  62°
B.  48 cm3
B.  78°
C.  60 cm3
C. 102°
D. 144 cm3
D. 118°
55
Mathematics
Session 2
34
●
A researcher collected data on the final heights of corn plants. The data were collected from
one farm over four growing seasons. He drew box-and-whisker plots to represent the data he
collected for each growing season.
Which of the following box-and-whisker plots shows the greatest median final height?
A.
0
1
2
3
Season 1 Final Heights (in meters)
0
1
2
3
Season 2 Final Heights (in meters)
0
1
2
3
Season 3 Final Heights (in meters)
0
1
2
3
Season 4 Final Heights (in meters)
B.
C.
D.
56
Mathematics
35
●
Session 2
37
●
Elaine’s summer job earnings were
$1275. She spent $40 of her earnings
per week during the school year.
A. x  2
B. x  2
Which of the following equations
represents the amount of money, m, that
was remaining from Elaine’s summer job
earnings after w weeks of school?
C. x  5
D. x  5
A. m  1275  40w
Which of the following is the solution to
the inequality below?
3  2x  7
B. m  40  1275w
C. m  40  1275w
D. m  1275  40w
36
●
Martin uses a ramp to practice
skateboarding. The ramp leans against
a wall. The right triangle formed by
the ramp, the wall, and the ground is
represented by the diagram below.
38
●
57°
Wall
Greta is making soup and needs to buy
broth. She is able to buy cans of broth
in the four different sizes listed below.
• Can A costs $3.84 for 32 ounces.
Ramp
• Can B costs $1.40 for 14 ounces.
• Can C costs $3.96 for 49.5 ounces.
• Can D costs $1.60 for 14.5 ounces.
?
Ground
Which can costs the least per ounce?
A. Can A
The measure of the angle formed by
the wall and the ramp is 57°. What is
the measure of the angle formed by the
ramp and the ground?
B. Can B
C. Can C
D. Can D
A.  33°
B.  43°
C.  93°
D. 123°
57
Mathematics
39
●
Session 2
Jacob made the stem-and-leaf plot below to show the number of minutes per day he spent
playing video games over a 10-day period.
Minutes Spent
Playing Video Games
6
5
7
8
5 6 7
1 3 3 5
9
1 4
Key
7 5 represents 75
What is the mean of the set of data in the stem-and-leaf plot?
A. 81
B. 82
C. 83
D. 85
40
●
The annual salaries, in millions of dollars, of 10 professional baseball players are shown
below.
2.4
0.9
10.1
5.5
13.0
15.6
12.0
10.5
What is the range of the 10 annual salaries, in millions of dollars?
A.  8.2
B.  9.1
C. 10.3
D. 14.9
58
0.7
11.5
Mathematics
Session 2
Questions 41 and 42 are open-response questions.
• BE SURE TO ANSWER AND LABEL ALL PARTS OF EACH QUESTION.
• Show all your work (diagrams, tables, or computations) in your Student Answer Booklet.
•If you do the work in your head, explain in writing how you did the work.
Write your answer to question 41 in the space provided in your Student Answer Booklet.
41
●
Steve completed his research for a term paper and started writing a first draft. He asked Luisa
to proofread the first draft.
a. Steve wrote 720 words of his first draft in 3 hours. What was the rate, in words per hour,
at which Steve wrote? Show or explain how you got your answer.
b. Luisa can proofread 1200 words per hour. At this rate, what was the time, in hours, it took
her to proofread 720 words? Show your work.
Steve’s completed term paper has 6000 words on 20 pages. Each page contains an equal
number of words.
c. Using your answer from part (a), what was the time, in hours, it took Steve to write 1 page?
Show your work.
d. Luisa proofread all 20 pages of Steve’s completed term paper at a rate of 1200 words per hour.
What is this rate in pages per hour? Show your work.
59
Mathematics
Session 2
Write your answer to question 42 in the space provided in your Student Answer Booklet.
42
●
Ethan wants to build a backgammon game board. A diagram of the game board, its
dimensions, and a detailed view of two triangles are shown below.
Detailed view
of two triangles
Backgammon Game Board
1.5 in.
Black
plastic
8 in.
Rectangular piece of wood
18 in.
White
plastic
20 in.
To make the board, Ethan will begin with a rectangular piece of wood that has a length of
20 inches and a width of 18 inches. He will then glue congruent triangles of black plastic and
white plastic onto the rectangular piece of wood. The table below shows the price per square inch
of each material Ethan will use.
Prices of Backgammon Game Board Materials
Material
Wood
Black plastic
White plastic
Price (per square inch)
$0.20
$0.50
$0.50
a. What is the area, in square inches, of 1 black triangle? Show your work.
b. Using your answer from part (a), what is the cost of the amount of black plastic needed to
make 1 black triangle? Show your work.
c. What is the cost of the amount of white plastic needed to make all of the white triangles?
Show your work.
d. What will be the total cost of the materials Ethan uses to build the game board, not
including the glue? Show your work.
60
Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System
Grade 10 Mathematics Reference Sheet
AREA FORMULAS
VOLUME FORMULAS
square ..................... A = s2
cube..........................................V = s3
(s = length of an edge)
rectangle ................. A = bh
right rectangular prism.............V = lwh
parallelogram ......... A = bh
OR
triangle ................... A = 1 bh
V = Bh
(B = area of a base)
2
trapezoid ................. A = 1 h(b1 + b2)
sphere.......................................V = 43 pr3
2
circle ....................... A = pr2
right circular cylinder . ............V = pr2h
right circular cone....................V = 13 pr2h
LATERAL SURFACE AREA FORMULAS
refArt1_10ma_s0mCAS.eps
right
square pyramid................V = 13 s2h
Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System
Grade 10 math
10/25/05 km, 11/08/05 me; 12/7/05 LT, 12/16/05 me
CIRCLE
FORMULAS
right rectangular prism .......... LA = 2(hw) + 2(lh)
right circular cylinder ........... LA = 2prh
right circular cone ................. LA = pr
( = slant height)
C = 2pr
A = pr2
refArt_10ma_s0mCAS.eps
Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System
Grade 10 math
SPECIAL
RIGHT TRIANGLES
10/25/05 km, 11/08/05 me; 12/7/05 LT, 12/16/05 me
right square pyramid ............. LA = 2s
( = slant height)
TOTAL SURFACE AREA FORMULAS
cube ....................................... SA = 6s2
right rectangular prism ......... SA = 2(lw) + 2(hw) + 2(lh)
x
45˚
x 
2
sphere .................................... SA = 4pr2
right circular cylinder ........... SA = 2pr2 + 2prh
x
right circular cone ................. SA = pr2+pr
( = slant height)
60˚
45˚
2y
y
2
right square pyramid ............. SA = s + 2s
( = slant height)
30˚
y 3
61
Mathematics Retest
November 2007 Released Items:
Reporting Categories, Standards, and Correct Answers*
Item No. Page No.
Reporting Category
Standard
Correct Answer
(MC/SA)*
C
B
A
A
B
C
D
B
A
C
D
D
A
B
5 inches
100 feet
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
41
41
42
42
42
42
43
43
43
43
44
44
44
44
45
45
46
47
47
48
49
50
50
51
51
51
52
52
53
53
54
55
Number Sense and Operations
Number Sense and Operations
Patterns, Relations, and Algebra
Patterns, Relations, and Algebra
Number Sense and Operations
Patterns, Relations, and Algebra
Data Analysis, Statistics, and Probability
Data Analysis, Statistics, and Probability
Patterns, Relations, and Algebra
Number Sense and Operations
Number Sense and Operations
Patterns, Relations, and Algebra
Patterns, Relations, and Algebra
Number Sense and Operations
Measurement
Geometry
Patterns, Relations, and Algebra
Patterns, Relations, and Algebra
Measurement
Patterns, Relations, and Algebra
Geometry
Data Analysis, Statistics, and Probability
Data Analysis, Statistics, and Probability
Measurement
Number Sense and Operations
Geometry
Geometry
Geometry
Patterns, Relations, and Algebra
Measurement
Data Analysis, Statistics, and Probability
Geometry
10.N.2
10.N.4
10.P.4
10.P.7
10.N.3
10.P.8
10.D.1
10.D.2
10.P.4
10.N.2
10.N.1
10.P.1
10.P.2
10.N.3
10.M.2
10.G.5
10.P.2
10.P.6
10.M.1
10.P.1
10.G.7
10.D.1
8.D.4
10.M.2
10.N.1
10.G.9
10.G.1
10.G.11
10.P.3
10.M.1
10.D.1
10.G.3
33
55
Measurement
10.M.2
B
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
56
57
57
57
57
58
58
59
60
Data Analysis, Statistics, and Probability
Patterns, Relations, and Algebra
Geometry
Patterns, Relations, and Algebra
Number Sense and Operations
Data Analysis, Statistics, and Probability
Data Analysis, Statistics, and Probability
Number Sense and Operations
Measurement
10.D.1
10.P.6
10.G.5
10.P.7
8.N.3
10.D.1
10.D.1
8.N.3
10.M.1
A
B
A
D
C
A
D
11
104 square feet
B
A
C
A
C
C
B
C
C
B
* Answers are provided here for multiple-choice items and short-answer items only. Each open-response item has
its own set of scoring guidelines, which allow for valid alternate interpretations and responses.
62